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The Academy sends out an official apology for the Oscars Best Picture mix-up

The Academy has officially apologised for the Best Picture fiasco at the 2017 Oscars, saying it “deeply regrets the mistakes that were made”.

The ceremony took an extremely awkward turn on Sunday night when the Best Picture Award, the most highly anticipated award of the evening, was handed to the wrong winner.

Warren Beatty mistakenly announced that La La Land had bagged the prize trophy, only for it to be revealed mid-way through the acceptance speech that the true victor was in fact Moonlight.

Beatty explained what had happened: “I opened the envelope and it said Emma Stone, La La Land. That’s why I took a long look at Faye [Dunaway]. I wasn’t trying to be funny.”

The Academy has now released an official statement, apologising for the incident: “We apologise to the entire cast and crew of La La Land and Moonlight, whose experience was profoundly altered by this error.

“We salute the tremendous grace they displayed under the circumstances. To all involved — including our presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, the filmmakers, and our fans watching worldwide — we apologise.”

Yesterday, PricewaterhouseCoopers (the Academy’s accounting firm) took responsibility for the mistake, attributing it to simple “human error”.

The Academy’s statement continues: “For the last 83 years, the Academy has entrusted PwC to handle the critical tabulation process, including the accurate delivery of results.

“PwC has taken full responsibility for the breaches of established protocols that took place during the ceremony. We have spent last night and today investigating the circumstances, and will determine what actions are appropriate going forward.

“We are unwaveringly committed to upholding the integrity of the Oscars and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.”